saw his back. I’ve never seen the back of my own head except in game tapes. But I knew it was you. It’s hard to miss this hair.” He wrapped a lock around his finger, tugged gently. “He carried you to the infirmary, and they shut the door in my face. I went around back and watched through the window. He stayed the whole time they worked on you. Rose left—to check on Monty, I suppose. But he stayed until you were stable.”
“Did you talk to him?”
“No. But he spotted me.”
“What did he do?”
Simon looked away. “It doesn’t matter. The important thing is, he and I were only a few feet away and the world didn’t end.”
“Early days,” I muttered.
• • •
The Free Walker base was just off the expressway, surrounded by dingy strip malls. A few blocks away, we found a sports bar, lively but not jam-packed. Perfect for what I needed.
“Shouldn’t we cross over?” Simon asked. “You’re going to get sick again.”
I felt steady, but popped a glucose tablet while I surveyed the crowd. “Either we steal a car or take a bus,” I said. “It’s easier to steal a car in an Echo.”
It was early, but one guy was already hitting boozily on an exasperated waitress.
He frowned. “You’re really comfortable with grand theft auto.”
“Monty was a bad influence in all sorts of ways. We need to get as close as possible to your house before we cross back over, in case the Consort’s watching the area.”
I lifted the drunk guy’s keys while his back was turned.
“What?” I said when Simon shook his head. “He shouldn’t be driving anyway.”
His frown deepened, but all he said was, “Lead the way.”
The key remote led us to an aqua-blue Chevy. In minutes we were speeding away, Simon at the wheel.
When we pulled up outside Simon’s Echo house, it was still light out. Simon stared at the drawn curtains, trying to make out the shapes inside. He dragged in a breath. “How are you feeling?”
“Okay,” I said, tapping my pendant. “I’ve got a few hours before I’m in trouble.”
“If we’re not back in a few hours, frequency poisoning won’t be the biggest problem we have,” he warned, and opened the car door.
I followed him across the street and into the garage. I chose another pivot, and we Walked back to the Key World, where I promptly stumbled over a lawnmower, cursing.
He helped me up, then pressed a button on his tuner. Red lights chased each other across the display, then slowed to a steady beat. “I’m good,” he said. “Stay still.”
A minute later a single lightbulb glowed weakly, the pull-chain swinging back and forth.
The familiar, bell-like frequency swept the last wisps of fog from my brain, and my shoulders eased.
“You actually park a car in here,” I said, looking around. Amelia’s car, I assumed. A dark green compact, older but well-maintained. “I always assumed she didn’t drive.”
“Why wouldn’t she drive? We keep her car in here. That’s what a garage is for, Del.”
“Not ours,” I said. “My dad uses it for an office. Keeps a whole bunch of divisi and other tools there, and the maps for the day’s Walks. We’re not allowed in without permission.”
Simon scoffed. “That’s a man cave, not an office.”
“No, it’s . . .” I blinked. “It is a man cave.”
“Oh yeah. Can’t blame him for wanting a little peace, especially when you and Addie lay into each other.”
Thinking about Addie cut deeper than I’d expected. How much trouble were she and Eliot in? What about my parents? Had they been taken into custody? We’d planned for the aftermath of the escape, taken steps to protect Addie and Eliot, but what if it hadn’t been enough? What would happen when the Free Walkers made their move?
To distract myself, I inspected the garage. The walls were lined with gardening equipment and tools. A bike stood in the corner, covered with cobwebs, and an entire corner was crowded with sports equipment. Basketball wasn’t the only sport Simon excelled at. He was a natural athlete—one of those people comfortable on any kind of court or field, his lean, easy grace an asset no matter what game he played.
He came up behind me as I was poking my fingers through the strings of a tennis racket. “You ready?”
“Yeah. I’ll go in and get him. We’ll Walk out through one of the house pivots, and your mom will come get you.”